Protecting Our Sacred Land

This mural, Protecting Our Sacred Land, was exhibited in several art galleries in the lower mainland. It tells the story of a paddling expedition that Brandon Gabriel travelled from Fort Langley to Prince Rupert that spanned 18 days and 1300 kilometres which were dotted by 22 different Indigenous communities. The paddling journey was to stoke awareness and action around protecting the land, and in each community there was an enthusiastic and well-organized activation of people who wanted to do just that. The painting is a visual depiction of the journey and the communities visited.

There are several visual elements worth expressing context. The scribbling small fonts are journal entries transcribed in similar style to their actual handwritten version. The solidarity fist adorns the centre, red and holding a pencil—this fist is ubiquitous as a call-to-action across different movements and is often mistaken as violent, thus prompting the pencil to be held to signify knowledge, becoming educated on land-issues and the creation of art to inspire action. A graffiti font of other texts keep the visual style grassroots and accessible, to empower youth in taking action. Lastly, there was a sound-design component that further articulated the calls to action with Ostwelve supplying that work.